Thinking of You
by Acting-Singing-Bella
Summary: Even though she was content, she couldn’t help but think of Troy as she embraced Josh. TxG


**Thinking of You **

**Author's Note: ****Hey there. So this is my newest story since I wrote Stalker and I would appreciate some reviews and ideas for a new story. Read and review and no flames please!**

**Summary: ****Even though she was content, she couldn't help but think of Troy as she embraced Josh.**

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You said move on  
Where do I go  
I guess second best  
Is all I will know_

_Cause when I'm with him  
I am thinking of you  
Thinking of you  
What you would do if  
You were the one  
Who was spending the night  
Oh I wish that I  
Was looking into your eyes_

_- Katy Perry 'Thinking of You'_

**--**

Gabriella absentmindedly stared out the window as she let a strong sadness take over her. She didn't want to be comforted. She didn't want anyone to lie to her and tell her that everything was going to be okay. She just wanted to stop and cry, in hopes of making herself feel better. She thought it would help her cope. But it wasn't helping. With every tear that fell from her eye, she felt emptier than she did before. She just couldn't win. There was no way she could feel complete. Not without Troy. Troy Bolton.

Everyone told her that he was totally wrong for her. He was a social jock and she was a shy bookworm. He was destined to go to the University of California and she planned on going to Stanford University. He had light brown hair and sapphire blue eyes, while she had black hair and chocolate eyes. They seemed wrong for each other. But that didn't stop them from falling in love with each other. They dated for five years before Gabriella moved into Troy's apartment for her twentieth birthday. She hoped that they would get married. She hoped she would have kids with him. But then she went and screwed it all up two years ago.

Gabriella let tears fall from her eyes as she looked down at the 'T' necklace that dangled around her neck. Her trembling fingers reached for it and she stroked it once with her thumb. She closed her eyes and let more tears fall from her eyes as she got up from her seat and she walked over to her closet and she pulled out the black dress that she had been told to wear for the party that night. She put it on with very little interest and she wiped away her tears. She remembered getting ready for a party like this one with Troy. She closed her eyes and began to remember…

**--**

_"Gabriella, are you almost ready? We're going to be late!" Troy exclaimed as he stood outside their bathroom door that adjoined their bedroom. Gabriella chuckled as she slipped into her sleek pale gray dress. _

_"I'm almost done Troy, don't rush perfection." Gabriella joked as she zipped herself up and began to apply her makeup on. Troy chuckled as he walked away from the bathroom door and he walked over to their closet and he pulled out a black belt and put it on so his black slacks wouldn't fall off. They were heading to Taylor and Chad's annual gala charity fundraiser; it was tradition that they went together every year._

_"Troy." Gabriella's soft voice came from behind. Troy turned around and he was in awe of her when he saw her. Her hair was in loose waves and she wore a curve-hugging dress that flowed to her ankles and it complimented her tanned skin wonderfully. Troy knew that he was in love with her for a reason._

_"Wow." Troy finally said. Gabriella smiled shyly as she walked over to Troy until her faces was only inches away from his._

_"I'm assuming you like the dress." Gabriella said in a flirtatious whisper. Troy grinned as he lifted a hand and cupped Gabriella's cheek into his hand and he caressed her cheek several times with his thumb._

_"I do like the dress…but I love the sexy woman wearing it more." Troy huskily whispered as he moved in closer and captured her lips with his. Gabriella returned the kiss with passion but then she pulled away from Troy._

_"We're going to be late." Gabriella reminded. Troy grinned mischievously as he shrugged his shoulders._

_"We don't always have to arrive on time." Troy said with a wink. Gabriella chuckled and she brought herself back into another kiss._

**--**

Gabriella shook away those memories as she slipped into her silver heels. It was Chad and Taylor's annual gala charity fundraiser. The first time she had been there since that night. This would be the first time she would go without Troy. She wasn't looking forward to it. It was going to be hard. So many memories were attached to that gala and it was hard facing it alone now. But she knew it had to be done. She had to get over it. She had to prove she was the stronger person. She had to prove them all wrong.

Running a hand through her raven hair, Gabriella grabbed her car keys and she slowly walked out of her bedroom and towards the door that led her out of her apartment. She paused at the closed door and she sighed deeply and tried to breathe evenly. She couldn't break down; not tonight. She had to prove her strength. She had to show people that she moved on from Troy. She was a strong woman who didn't need a man by her side. She was going to go to the gala and prove how strong she really was. She sighed and she eventually opened the door and walked down towards the elevator. She still questioned her strength.

**--**

Gabriella sat awkwardly at her table while Sharpay and Taylor were social with their husbands as well as other people who sat at their table. She would occasionally nod her head and chuckle at someone's joke but other than that, she didn't speak much. She couldn't think of a good way to join the conversation. She had too much on her mind. But then someone sat beside her that caught her attention. Josh De Silva; the man that had been trying to ask Gabriella out on a date for almost two years. Gabriella rolled her eyes as she looked away from Josh.

"Hello Gabriella; that dress does look beautiful on you." Josh complimented with a cocky smile. Gabriella rolled her eyes as she continued to look away from Josh.

"Thank you." Gabriella coldly replied. Josh chuckled darkly as he continued to stare at a stern Gabriella.

"You're still wasting your time on Bolton?" Josh asked maliciously with a snide chuckle. Gabriella looked at him with insulted and angered eyes.

"Josh, this is none of your business. I don't want to talk about it because it is not your concern." Gabriella replied curtly. But that didn't stop Josh; he continued to antagonize Gabriella.

"Gabriella, move on already. He's not in the picture anymore. You could be happier with me. You could have everything…if you just pick me." Josh said as he tried to hold Gabriella's hand. But she quickly ripped her hand from his.

"Never." Gabriella hissed as she got up from her seat and stormed into the ladies washroom. She stared at herself in the mirror and she felt like she couldn't even recognize herself. She was still Gabriella physically…but she wasn't herself. She knew she wasn't herself. And she wished more than anything that she could go back to being Gabriella again. But that was going to be next to impossible. She ran her hand through cold water and she closed her eyes as she remembered the last time she was at this gala with Troy…

**--**

_Gabriella giggled as she held onto Troy's hand as he was leading to the garden of the country club where the gala was being hosted. They had just cracked a small piece off the ice sculpture and they were running away so no one would see that they had cracked the ice sculpture. Their chuckling died down into loving smiles as they held hands and walked down the stone path that led to the gazebo that was right in the middle of the garden. Gabriella and Troy smiled once they were in the gazebo and Gabriella blushed when Troy wrapped his arms around her and held her back tight up against his chest. He then placed a gentle kiss on her bare shoulder._

_"Did I mention that you look very beautiful tonight babe?" Troy mumbled as he trailed kisses up and down her neck and shoulder. Shivers travelled up and down Gabriella's back as she clutched on tighter to Troy's broad arms._

_"I think you mentioned it a few times." Gabriella replied back as she flirtatiously fluttered her eyelashes. Troy grinned as he held her back closer to his broad chest._

_"You're beautiful." Troy whispered into her ear as he pressed a kiss up against her temple. Gabriella turned in his arms and she wrapped her arms around his neck and she pulled herself into a passionate kiss. Their lips gently brushed against one another's, both not wanting to let go of one another. Moments later, their lips parted and Gabriella rested her head in the crook of Troy's neck, inhaling his sweet scent as he did the same thing. _

_"Gabby?" Troy's voice asked as he pulled away to look into Gabriella's eyes. He was the only one who could call her that._

_"Yeah?" Gabriella replied, seeing the seriousness in his eyes. Troy stared intently into her eyes as he lifted a hand and gently ran a hand through her raven hair. His sapphire eyes were locked on her chocolate ones._

_"I love you." Troy told her with pure love and devotion in his voice._

_"I love you too Troy." Gabriella said back as she began to wonder why Troy had suddenly professed his love for her. Troy stared into her eyes as his hand cupped her cheek and his thumb stroked her cheek several times._

_"I was in love with you the moment I saw you. When I'm around you, I want to be a better person and when I look into your eyes…I see the person I want to spend forever with. I don't want you to be my girlfriend anymore Gabriella because I want you to be my wife." Troy lovingly confessed. With that said, he got down on his knees and he pulled out a three stone diamond ring, causing Gabriella to gasp._

_"Will you marry me?" Troy asked with pure love and devotion in his voice. Everything inside Gabriella told her to say yes to him. Everything in her heart told her that she should marry him and have children with him. She knew she wanted to. She wanted to spend forever with Troy. But something inside her told her that now wasn't the time. They were both young and still had to get a stable career before settling down and starting a family. Gabriella knew that there was a lot that they needed to do before taking this big step._

_"No." Gabriella answered weakly, refusing to look into Troy's eyes. She already knew what they look like. Troy stared at her, in shock. Gabriella just rejected his proposal. She said no to him; he didn't expect that answer from her. His face looked like he had been slapped in the face._

_"No? What do you mean no?" Troy asked, exasperation in his eyes. Gabriella sighed as she placed her hands on Troy's shoulders as he slowly stood up from the ground. She had to explain to Troy; this wasn't going to be easy._

_"I want to marry you Troy. I really do. But we're so young. We're only twenty-two Troy and we have to finish school! Neither of us have a stable career and we have to earn more money to afford the wedding and to take care of our children if we decide to have any. I will marry you when everything falls into place. If we could just wait until we're twenty-five then I will marry you. But now is not the right time Troy." Gabriella tried to tell Troy in a way that was loving and tender. She couldn't deal with Troy reading her wrong._

_"But we have everything we need right now. We live together; I'm coaching basketball for elementary school kids next fall and you're going to be working at the newspaper in a few months. We don't even have to have children for a few years. We can wait until you're ready." Troy pleaded. Gabriella shook her head as she squeezed Troy's shoulder._

_"I'm not ready to get married." Gabriella bluntly told Troy. Troy stared into her brown eyes with pure hurt in his eyes. Holding back his tears, Troy shook his head and walked away from Gabriella. _

_Gabriella stood there, instantly regretting her words._

**--**

The tears that soaked Gabriella's cheeks were slowly being wiped away by Taylor and Sharpay. Gabriella didn't even realize they had even entered the bathroom. How did she not notice her two best friends enter the bathroom and begin to wipe the never ending tears from her cheeks? She really was out of it. Sharpay sighed as she took a step back from Gabriella. She looked radiant in her hot pink dress while Taylor looked just as beautiful in her deep green cocktail dress. They both sighed in concern for their best friend's fragile state.

"Gabriella, you can't keep doing this to yourself." Sharpay simply said with concern. Gabriella shook her head as she wiped away the tears that just escaped her eyes.

"I can't help it Sharpay. I feel so bad all the time." Gabriella whimpered. Taylor sighed as she placed a hand on Gabriella's shoulder.

"Honey, you have got to move on. You made your decision. Everything that happened with Troy was two years ago. I'm sure he would understand if you wanted to have a relationship with Josh. It'll benefit you Gabriella. It really will." Taylor tried to convince Gabriella. But Gabriella shook her head, refusing to listen to what they had to say.

"No, just…no. I'm not in love with Josh. I never will be in love with him! I can't; there's no way you can convince me." Gabriella told them, trying her hardest not to cry anymore.

"Gabs, Taylor's right. You have to get over it. Just be happy for once. You never are anymore and we just want you back. We want the old Gabriella back." Sharpay pleaded with pure concern and sadness in her voice. This almost breaks Gabriella's heart. Her best friends were genuinely sad for her. They wanted her to be happy. And she wanted to be happy. But there was something she wanted to do first. There was something she had to say to Troy first.

"You're right. But there's something I have to do first." Gabriella told Sharpay and Taylor as she smiled through her tears. Taylor and Sharpay stared at Gabriella and they only nodded their heads as they watched Gabriella slowly pace out of the bathroom. They knew that this was the step that Gabriella didn't want to face for over two years.

Gabriella soon found herself walking out of the gala and towards the parking lot where her car was parked right in the center. Gabriella pulled her keys out from her purse and she unlocked the car and she got herself buckled into her seat. With a deep breath, she began to drive. It would only take her about ten minutes to get to Troy. She knew it wouldn't take more than that. She had to say what she had to say. It had been killing her that she had left so much unsaid. She didn't even understand why she didn't say everything she had to when she had the chance. She never should have waited so long.

And then she arrived. She got to Troy. Gabriella fumbled with the buckle of her seatbelt as she swung open the car door. Before she knew it, she was running to Troy. She nearly tripped on her heel several times, but that didn't keep her from running. Finally she got there; she got to Troy's headstone. She fell to her knees as she read what the headstone read, even though she already knew what it said:

**Troy William Bolton**

**January 1, 1990- July 14, 2012**

**Our Guardian Angel**

Gabriella found herself crying again as she closed her eyes and remembered the night Troy's life slipped away before her eyes.

**--**

_Gabriella and Troy were in an awkward silence as they were driving home from the gala. They did not say a word to each other during dinner and neither of them made an effort to. There was so much that they had to talk about but they couldn't bring themselves to talk about it. Gabriella sighed as she looked at Troy who was very focused on the road and did his best not to look at Gabriella. The awkwardness was almost killing Gabriella._

_"Can you please say something?!" Gabriella almost demanded with frustration. Troy rolled his eyes as he turned his head to look at her._

_"What do you want me to say Gabriella? Sorry I proposed to you and not in a few years when you wanted? What do you want me to say?!" Troy hollered, unable to control the dynamic of his voice._

_"Troy, I'm sorry. I do want to marry you; just not now. I still love you! I really do Troy. I love you and if you love me, you will wait for me." Gabriella insisted firmly. Troy sighed as he looked deeply into her brown eyes._

_"I know you do Gabriella. I love you too, but I'm just hurt that you said no. You didn't even take the ring to hold onto until you were ready to get married and make the plans. I don't want to act like such a jerk I really don't but I…" Troy didn't finish; at least to Gabriella's memory. She remembered a truck crashing right into Troy's side of the car, which sent their car flying off the road. _

_Gabriella had been unconscious for several minutes but she then awoke, covered in blood. She turned her head and she saw Troy; bloody and lifeless. He was not breathing or moving. On impulse, Gabriella quickly leaped to Troy and she tried to find a pulse. She didn't. She then tried to revive him. But she couldn't. She prayed and hoped that he would wake up and tell her everything was going to be alright. But he wouldn't. With tears mixing in with the blood on her face, she leaned in closer to Troy's deceased body and she kissed his lips. They tasted like blood._

_"Troy…no please…you can't do this to me…PLEASE DON'T GO!" Gabriella sobbed on top of his lifeless body._

**--**

"Troy…I always loved you. I always have and I always will. I should've said yes. I should've had children with you. I should be spending forever with you. But we're not. Our forever never came to be what we had hoped it would be. But I have to let you go. I have to move on. I'm sorry I haven't been coming here since your funeral, but I didn't want to face you. But I'm stronger now. And even though I am going to spend our forever with someone else, I'll always be thinking of you. I'll be thinking of the way you used to hold me through the night, how you used to kiss…and how you used to love me. Goodbye Troy Bolton. I will love you forever." Gabriella tearfully told Troy's headstone, hoping that his angel was looking down at her with a smile.

Gabriella got up from the ground and she began to walk to her car. But she saw someone standing there. She smiled halfheartedly when she saw who it was. It was Josh. He must've known where she would be driving off to. She sighed as she eased into a smile and she walked right up to Josh, until she was face-to-face with him. He sighed as he put a hand on her shoulder. He knew that she needed a friend to comfort her.

"Are you okay?" Josh asked with concern in his voice. Gabriella smiled through her tears as she nodded her head.

"I've been better." Gabriella replied with a forced smile. Josh nodded his head and he smiled gently at her. He knew she needed it.

"How about you and I go out for some pizza and we just forget about everything." Josh offered, giving Gabriella the choice. Gabriella laughed gently and she nodded her head. She may have given him a hard time before, but she did like that Josh was a comfort to her.

"I would like that." Gabriella answered. And soon, Gabriella found herself wrapped in Josh's arms, inhaling his sweet scent.

Even though she was content, she couldn't help but think of Troy as she embraced Josh.

**The End**

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_**Please read and review! Have a good summer! **_

_**Alanna xo **_


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